


Countdown to Despair

by PokemonTrainerTom



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2019-11-12 21:36:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18018890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PokemonTrainerTom/pseuds/PokemonTrainerTom
Summary: Makoto wakes up in Hope's Peak Academy on the first day of the killing game.While this normally would be a big enough worry in itself, he is even more worried about the golden numbers that only he can see floating over everyone's head.And why they're all counting down...Very loosely based on the Nickelback music video - Savin Me.Entire Game Spoilers.





	1. Start the Clock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto wakes up.
> 
> Some other things happen too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, new fic. Here goes nothing.
> 
> Danganronpa spoilers ahead, consider yourself warned.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don’t own Danganronpa or any of the characters involved. I also have no connection to Nickelback, nor their song ‘Savin Me’.

Makoto Naegi woke up.

While normally this wouldn’t be a fact worth noting, in this instance it was something that caused him a great deal of confusion. When had he...?

Wiping at his eyes and releasing a groan he looked down at his lap.

He was sat at a desk, _a school desk_ his tired mind clarified. He stared at it for a moment before his gaze caught a small puddle of drool in the middle.

 _Did I… That’s embarrassing…_  

Making a mental note to clean up his mess later he turned his attention to the other thing currently on his desk. 

It was a small piece of paper. A pamphlet if he was being generous. Incredibly generous. It looked as though it had been constructed by a toddler, complete with crayon lines that seemed to be trying to _escape_ the shapes they were drawn into. Also featured in crayon were a couple of sentences. 

‘The next semester is about to start. Starting today this school will be your entire world.’ 

 _School..? Oh! Hope’s Peak!_  

That was right, how could be forget? Despite the fact that is was just a completely average high school student, he had managed to be accepted into the most prestigious school in Japan. Hope’s Peak Academy. Even if he had only got in by complete chance... 

Shaking his head to stop himself from going too far off track his attention once more turned to the pamphlet. 

 _What does it mean by ‘your entire world’? And why do those words unnerve me so much?_  

Lifting his head to look at his surroundings, he noticed that he appeared to be in a classroom of sort. 

 _Guess that would explain the desk._ He thought before his eyes widened in panic. _Wait did I fall asleep in class?_  

Wait, that couldn’t be right. He certainly would have remembered meeting both his new teacher and classmates at the very least. In fact when he thought about it the last thing he could remember was coming into Hope’s Peak ready for orientation before… before he… 

His head was killing him. Did he collapse before someone had brought him here to recover? 

But if that was the case, why was he all alone? Surely _someone_ would have waited for him to wake up. 

His sense of unease growing he turned to his left to see, instead of the windows that he would have expected… giant metal plates? Stumbling a little as he stood he slowly walked over to them, giving them an experimental pull but it didn’t even budge. 

 _What’s going on…? How...? Where?_ **_WHY?_**  

With his mind racing through questions, and his sense of panic only rising when he realised he didn’t know the answer to _any_ of them, he started to frantically move towards the door on the other side of the room. Scrambling to distract himself from the situation he had found himself in he briefly caught sight of a clock on the wall, just as it ticked over to eight o’clock. Didn’t he arrive at ten past seven? Had he been out for nearly an _hour_? Longer? What if he- 

 _He just needed to find someone,_ his mind rationalised, _then I can get some answers…_  

Making his way into the hallway he stopped as he heard the sound of muffled voices from somewhere further down. _Oh thank goodness_ . With a smile on his face (as there was no need to make a bad, or well an _even worse_ , first impression) he made his way towards them, noting the oddly coloured doors he passed along the way. 

 _If this is Hope’s Peak it’s not really how I imagined it…_  

Pushing open the double doors in front of him he came to a scene that caused his smile to freeze. 

Inside there were a group of teenagers, each of them dressed and styled in a wide selection of colours. Presumably they were students, like him. He recognised most of them immediately thanks to the research he had done before hand, though there were a few exceptions. 

Behind them there was what appeared to be a vault, kind of like you’d see in a bank which, in addition to the bolted up windows he saw earlier, painted an even more worrying picture of the situation they all had found themselves in. 

Upon his entrance many of his classmates(?) spoke up, releasing comments ranging from them merely acknowledging his arrival, to scolding his tardiness (Which he found slightly unfair as it wasn’t his fault he was late. Probably.) 

But none of these factors were what he focused on. 

Instead his eyes were drawn to the impossible sight of the fourteen golden numbers he saw _floating_ over all of their heads.

* * *

_1,813,805,564_  

“H-Hey are you e-even listening to me!” 

Wait, what was going on? Trying to tear his eyes away from the numbers that were lazily floating above the girl in front of him Makoto stuttered out a response. 

“H-Huh?” 

 _1,813,805,557_  

“Y-You weren’t! I know I said that you wouldn’t remember my n-name but for you to ignore me entirely...” 

“Hold on! I’m sorry that I zoned out for a moment there, but I promise I do remember your name.” Seeing that the girl was about to bite out a retort he quickly continued, “You’re Toko Fukawa, the Ultimate Writing Prodigy.” 

“O-oh… Maybe you were listening…” Toko stuttered out before fidgeting and pressing her fingers together. 

Taking the break in conversation in stride Makoto’s eyes once more flicked up to the numbers over the girl’s head. 

 _1,813,805,532_  

 _It’s some sort of… countdown? But it’s not like a clock, the whole thing seems to be in seconds…_  

“S-Stop ignoring me!” Toko yelled pointing her finger into her face. It didn’t last long though before she shrunk back from the attention multiple people were now giving her as a result of her volume. She waited for their attention to divert before continuing. “Just because you think I’m u-ugly-” 

“N-No that’s not at all what I was-” He stuttered, cutting himself off before he could accidentally insult her even more. Seeing that she was about to speak he raised his hand to hers sheepishly before continuing to speak. “I’m sorry. I think that… I hit my head earlier! So my brain’s a bit fuzzy at the moment. I’m Makoto Naegi, the Ultimate Lucky Student.” 

Toko stared at the hand, seemingly unsure what to do with it. Makoto shuffled slightly but kept the hand firm to try and make up for his absent mindedness before. 

Toko’s gaze snapped to his and Makoto tried as hard as he could to resist the urge to look back at the girl’s numbers. Toko was staring into his eyes, likely looking for any sign of deceit in his previous words. Thankfully, while Makoto knew himself to be an extremely poor liar he was not _entirely_ doing so here. His head really was swimming. 

Slowly Toko’s hand crept towards his but, abruptly her face flushed (though whether it was due to anger or embarrassment he wasn’t sure) and the hand was quickly withdrawn. 

“J-Just leave me alone…” And with that the girl skulked away. 

“It was nice to meet you…” He said to Toko’s retreating figure, though if she’d actually heard it she offered no sign. 

Just as Makoto turned his attention away from Toko a boisterous voice rang out from behind him. “Excuse me, my I have your attention?” When he turned to face the male he continued, “I’m Kiyotaka Ishimaru. I believe in bold simplicity! Let’s work together on our educational crusade!” 

 _1,231,039_  

Makoto stammered out an introduction to the Ultimate Moral Compass, raising a hand in greeting. This time it was enthusiastically accepted and as his hand was almost crushed Makoto’s thoughts turned to what he had just seen. 

 _Why does Taka’s countdown end so much… sooner?_  

Makoto waited patiently for Taka to finish talking, making sure not to repeat the same mistake he made with Toko, before he asked the most pressing question on his mind. 

“Taka can you… Do you see anything _floating_ above anyone’s head?” 

“I beg your pardon? Is this some sort of prank?” If anything, Taka seemed _furious_ at this idea. “How dare you try and-” 

“Taka _please_ .” He knew it was rude to cut him off like that but he _really_ needed this answered. 

Sensing his sincerity Taka’s gaze swept around the room. “What am I looking for?” 

“Just… anything that _shouldn’t_ be there.” 

“Then no! Unless you count that so called hair style that delinquent has over there!” 

“ **HEY** , what the FUCK did you say about my hair you bastard?!” 

“Ah, my apologies Makoto but it appears I should take care of this.” And with that Taka walked over to the imposing figure on the other side of the room, raising his volume to match. 

“It was nice to meet you too.” Makoto muttered to himself. He had known it was a long shot to ask someone but he had still hoped… 

“That you weren’t the only one seeing this... thing?” 

“Exactly.” Makoto sighed. “Wait-” 

Spinning on his heel he met a head full of blue hair he hadn’t seen in years. 

“How did you-” 

 _321,624_  

“Didn’t you know Makoto? I’m psychic!” 

 _321,622_  

“Just kidding! I just have really good intuition!” Sayaka Maizono, the Ultimate Pop Sensation reassured him, mistaking his horrified expression. 

 _321,617_  

 _It’s… so low. Even Taka’s much smaller timer was over one million. What does it_ mean? 

“Are you okay Makoto? You look really… worried.” 

The direct question was enough for him to snap out of it. Momentarily. “Y-Yeah, sorry. I think I just hit my head earlier. It’s…” He trailed off. He really didn’t want to seem too _weird_ so he just shook his head. “Nothing. Wait, how did you know about-” 

“Well it was hard to miss your reaction when you first entered the room.” Releasing a brief giggle into her hand Sayaka continued to speak, “You were so out of it I don’t think you heard that we were even doing introductions!” 

_I suppose that explains why the first person I met was Toko. She doesn’t exactly seem like the… social type but if everyone else had already paired up…_

“Speaking of introductions…” With a smile on her face that had him flushing all over again Sayaka spoke, “Hi, I’m Sayaka Maizono. I look forward to getting to know you!” 

Makoto was about to do the same before he thought back on everything Sayaka had said so far and frowned. “Hold on, I didn’t introduce myself, so how did you know _my_ name?” 

While _he_ may have remembered _Sayaka_ from their time together in Middle School, he was just an ordinary kid. There was no way she remembered him was there? 

This time it was _Sayaka_ who blushed slightly, offering him a bashful little smile. “O-Oh well you’re Makoto Naegi right?” When she received a small, stunned nod from him she continued. “We went to the same Middle School didn’t we?” 

“Y-Yeah, Sixth Black Root right?” He asked flusteredly. 

“That’s right!” Sayaka enthusiastically confirmed. “I’m glad you remember!”   

While Makoto was glad to share a smile with the idol (and he made a mental note to try and do it more often with the girl in the foreseeable future) he still had some pressing questions about what he was _actually_ seeing. 

“Hey Sayaka… You don’t see anything _weird_ above _my_ head do you?” 

Thankfully not asking any questions, Sayaka raised a hand to her chin in thought before her line of sight raised to rest above his head. He couldn’t help himself from risking a glance at her numbers in turn. 

 _322,565_  

“Hmm... Nope, sorry Makoto! Unless of course you mean your cute little ahoge!” 

In spite of the disappointment he felt Makoto couldn’t help feeling his cheeks heat up in response to her words (and releasing a quick yelp when her hand raised to touch the point).

* * *

“W-What are you doing?” 

“Ah…” Withdrawing his hand from over the petite programmer in front of him Makoto made a note of the fact that the numbers were completely intangible. His hand went straight through them without even the slightest bit of warmth or discomfort. 

 _755,740_  

He had decided to conduct this experiment with Chihiro for a very simple reason. Embarrassingly she was the only one of his classmates that he was actually taller than. 

Though considering she already looked like she was about to cry Makoto decided it was probably best _not_ to say this to her, admittedly cute, face.

* * *

“Mr Naegi, your eyes appear to be looking at something over my head, are you perhaps in possession of the power of the gamer?” 

“Ah no... Sorry Hifumi.” 

“A shame. I was hoping to finally know what level I currently am, I suppose I’ll just have to find out by myself one day!” 

 _1,242,941_  

“Though I can’t help but notice you did in fact recognise my reference! Mr Naegi how well versed are you in the world of 2D?” 

“Oh, well you see my little sister…”

* * *

“Um, Hiro?” 

“What’s up Makato?” 

“Could you… smooth your hair back for a second?” 

“Err, why?” 

Unsure how to explain to Hiro how his wild mass of hair was so large that it actually _obscured_ his timer Makoto merely kept up a hopeful expression until Hiro did as he asked. 

 _1,701,775,453_  

“Wait a second… is this some kind of occult thing? Are you after my organs?!” 

Makoto released a sigh.

* * *

Half listening to Leon’s declaration of how he was going to launch his new music career while at Hope’s Peak Makoto once more took a look at the golden numbers above his head. 

 _351,072_  

 _It’s barely any higher than Sayaka’s… Is it how long it’ll take for them to achieve their dreams?_ He asked himself hopefully. 

But as Leon started to say that the only reason he was getting into music was for an attractive girl he had seen recently he disregarded the idea. Leon didn’t really strike him as the… committed type.

* * *

Now stood in front of the Ultimate Swimmer (who had asked for him to call her Hina) Makoto could only marvel at the thing that immediately drew his eye. 

 _Huge… It must be the biggest yet..._  

“...Makoto… Naegi… Okay, I think I got it! Wait a second… Where do you think you’re looking mister?” The girl asked with a pout. 

With a final look Makoto returned his gaze to Hina’s face. “Sorry I just… didn’t want to distract you?” He said uncertainty. 

Hina kept up her pouty expression for a few seconds longer before it was replaced with a smile. 

“Aw that’s okay Makoto! I’ve had people look in worse places!” She cheerfully waved off. “But I’m not getting any kinda creepy vibe from you so I don’t really mind!” 

“Oh, thank you?” Makoto said, his eyes briefly returning to the number above her head. 

 _1,972,148,031_  

 _It’s a bit sad to hear but when she looks as... attractive as this I can sort of understand it…_ He thought distractedly. 

“E-Eh? W-What did you say?” 

It was with a blush and a stammer that Makoto realised he had just said that last thought out loud.

* * *

_782,224_  

Mondo seemed like a nice enough guy. A bit blunt, but it could have been a lot worse considering his talent. 

Though Makoto made sure not to make any comments about the guy’s hair. It was a… touchy subject.

* * *

“The Ultimate Lucky Student hmm? Perhaps we could engage in a match some time.” 

“I don’t mind.” Makoto began, though his eyes quickly widened. “B-But just for fun right? No money involved?” 

Celeste merely let out a deceptively cute titter. 

_1,250,959_

* * *

“Um... could I-”

“No.” 

It was only just before the heir moved away that Makoto managed to read his number. 

_1,935,333,251_

* * *

As Sakura spoke more of a training routine she could implement for him Makoto craned his neck to look at the number above her daunting figure. 

 _1,596,673_  

 _She seems to have the largest countdown here, of anyone who isn’t ten figures long anyway. Just what do these numbers_ mean _? I have to figure it out!_ He vowed, nodding his head in agreement to his final thought. 

“Excellent, I’m glad you accept. I look forward to exercising alongside you Makoto.” 

_Wait. What?!_

* * *

_343,446_  

 _Another one that ends_ much _sooner in comparison to everyone else. In fact,_ he speculated, doing a quick recap over everyone’s number so far, _her’s will be the second one to reach zero after Sayaka…_  

Shaking off his thoughts Makoto returned his focus to Junko just in time to hear her rant about a nightmare photoshoot she had experienced recently. 

Releasing a snort of laughter, Makoto watched as Junko’s smile softened, becoming slightly less plastic in response. 

 _Who asks someone to make poses based on spaghetti?_ He wondered, shaking his head with mirth.

* * *

“Are you...” 

Trailing off uncertainty when Kyoko’s iron mask of a face refused to let anything slip Makoto recalled exactly what he had spotted over her lavender coloured head. 

 _2,087,491,052_  

 _Two… billion?_  

Makoto may not be the best at maths, especially without any paper to write his workings, but two _billion_ seconds must be a really long time, right? 

What could all these different numbers possibly be counting down to? 

“And that’s everyone!” Taka’s voice rang out from somewhere to his left. “Though I can’t believe it took us all so long just to introduce ourselves! May I remind you that orientation was supposed to begin at eight!” 

It was true, in the end it had taken them almost half an hour. Though with fourteen students to speak to, each of them with vastly contrasting personalities a part of Makoto was thankful it wasn’t much longer. 

Ignoring Byakuya’s scoff that had sounded after Taka’s words, Kyoko was the next to speak. “It may have taken a while, but don’t you think someone should have come looking for us by now?” 

“Indeed.” Sakura spoke. “We should have seen _someone_.” 

“What is going on here?” Hifumi fretted. 

Just as he was about to reassure the larger male the screen behind them all turned on and a cheerful voice soon rang out. 

 _"Ahem! Ahem, testing! Mike check, one two! This is a test of the school broadcast system! Am I on? Can everyone hear me? Okay, well then….!"_  

“What the fuck?”  
  
_"Ahh, to all incoming students! I would like to begin the entrance ceremony at…..right now! Please make your way to the gymnasium at your earliest convenience. That's all. I'll be waiting!"_  

Without a word Byakuya spun on his heel and began making his way out of the room. A couple other students followed, though not without expressing their shock. 

Makoto however was frozen. The voice had been bright, cheerful… and only worked to unnerve him more. He didn’t know what it was but that voice _terrified_ him. 

By the time he had snapped out of it nearly everyone was making their way out of the double doors. Looking around he saw only Sayaka, waiting patiently with a smile. 

“Ready to go Makoto?” 

Slowly nodding in agreement the two of them followed some of the slower students down to the gym. 

 _Is it some sort of soulmates timer?_ He thought with a blush, _It probably_ would _explain why Byakuya’s was so high..._  

Just before they entered his attention turned to the glass display case sitting outside. 

Peering into it he caught a glimpse of his reflection. He still looked pretty tired and his hair was even more mussed than usual. But the thing that most got his attention? 

The empty air above his head.

* * *

Exactly seven minutes forty three seconds later Makoto realised he somehow felt even worse than he had before. 

Then again considering exactly what he had just heard during that time it was a miracle he was still standing. 

The _only_ positive thing he could find is that there weren’t any numbers floating over the _bear’s_ head as well. 

In front of him many of his classmates were expressing their thoughts on their situation, their numbers, still counting down at a constant rate (though now that be focused on a few at a time _not_ all of them were synced with one another), he noticed that many of them were partially obscured to him if they were stood at an angle or, in the case of Chihiro (who was stood directly in front of him facing forwards), the _back_ of the numbers were facing him, making them much harder to decipher. 

It seemed the numbers were only projected in the direction people were facing instead of just being displayed to him. 

Two minutes (thirty eight seconds) later everyone had finished looking over the rules at Kyoko’s suggestion. Soon after (another one minute twenty three seconds) everyone had decided to split up to help search the school in case there was anything they could use to help them escape. 

Unfortunately as a cause of Mondo’s hair trigger and, well, Byakuya it seemed that this idea had already hit a wall. 

"I'm gonna kick your ass!"  
  
Before Mondo could fulfill that threat, Makoto ran up and stood between the two. "S-Stop it! We shouldn't fight!" 

“What the fuck did you say to me? Are you defending this bastard?” 

“N-No I just…” His words failing him in the face of such a large threat Makoto’s eyes nervously flicked around before coming to a rest on the now common sight of the golden numbers over the biker’s head. 

 _780,982_  

“You little shit! The least you could do is look me in the eye when you say something like that!” 

Just as Makoto realised his mistake and began to think that _maybe_ getting between the Ultimate Biker Gang Leader and the target of his ire was a bad idea a fist raced towards his chin. 

The last thing he saw was the golden glow of the numbers above Mondo’s head before his eyes closed and he felt himself falling backwards.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y’ello everyone, thanks for stopping by.
> 
> I’ve had this idea for a while and really wanted to get it out. So I did, and it didn’t take me three months! Yay.
> 
> So this Makoto has somehow ended up with a countdown to everyone’s death floating above their head. How? ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ It’s not important though so feel free to make up your own theories. How will it affect the killing game though? Welllllllllllll...
> 
> As mentioned in the summary this concept is based on the music video for the Nickelback song ‘Savin Me’. I haven’t actually listened to the song though so try not to judge me either way for it. If it helps you can imagine it as Makoto having Shinigami eyes from Death Note, just without the added name bonus.
> 
> Please let me know what you thought of this new prologue, and if you’d like to see more! Feel free to leave your thoughts, help me make this fic as good as it can be!
> 
> Also please check out my profile for my other works too, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
> 
> Until the next time!


	2. 39600 Seconds and Counting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto wakes up.
> 
> Hopefully it goes better than last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back again. Sorry about the wait. The main issue is, as per usual with me, all of this is spontaneously written. I have a vague idea of where I want this to go, but other than that…
> 
> It’s an issue of deciding whether or not this is an ‘everybody lives’ fic. Makoto essentially has a cheat code that’ll tell him exactly who killed who, but he doesn’t yet know that’s what it is… I don’t want to kill characters off but this is a Danganronpa fic so…
> 
> Let me know what you think. I have a direction I’m leaning towards, but I’m interested in hearing your thoughts. And with that…

Makoto Naegi woke up. Again. 

The first thing he realised was that he was lying in a bed, and for just a moment he hoped that everything before had been nothing more than a nightmare, brought upon by his nerves of attending a new school, surrounded by some of the most talented people in the world. For a moment more he expected Komaru to rush in, berating him for oversleeping and giving his hair a tug in retaliation. 

Unfortunately this thought was immediately disproved by the second thing he noticed. 

His jaw was _killing_ him. 

“Ng...gah…”  

Rubbing at the sore spot he sat up and began to warily eye his new surroundings. To his left he spotted two doors, neither of them open, and a monitor on the wall, although that wasn’t turned on. Nothing of value there. 

In front of him was a little table. Taking a quick glance he spotted a key, almost comically large in appearance, secured tightly in a fist. Releasing a yawn (which was honestly more of a groan) he followed the fist’s arm up to find a blue head of hair, and just above that, some lazily floating numbers. The owner of said features was looking at him in relief, a soft smile on their face. Returning the smile and offering a brief nod he turned his head again. 

To his right he spotted a notepad resting on a long piece of wooden furniture but not much else and a cursory glance behind him only offered a view of some more bolted up windows. Dam… Darn it. 

It just figured that despite somehow ending up at Hope’s Peak, the most prestigious school in the country, he had experienced such horrifying things in such a short period of time. He swore he could just _hear_ the universe laughing at him, giggling in a melodic little titter. 

He released a resigned sigh, his experience rushing back to him, the numbers, the bear, the _game_ … It seemed that the _only_ positive thing so far had been… 

“Sayaka…” He mumbled to himself, his eyes closing as he leaned back onto his pillow, basking in the silence in the room. 

“Yes Makoto?” 

His eyes snapped open once more, much wider than they were before. He stared stubbornly at the ceiling for a moment as his ears were once more treated to the sound of a soft giggle. It was soon covered by the sound a groan. 

Slowly his head rose and, with a final subdued noise of protest, his eyes met that of Sayaka, still seated at the table, her hand raised in a kind attempt to try and hide the mirth in her expression. 

“S...Sayaka..?” 

The girl before him waved her hand in greeting, a final beautiful sound escaping her now freed lips. “Hi Makoto!” 

Unable to furious flush from rushing to his cheeks any longer, Makoto stuttered, trying to offer any response other than a yelp. 

He settled for just covering his face with his hands when he didn’t succeed.

* * *

A few minutes later Makoto felt as though he was finally calm enough to make eye contact with Sayaka again. While the moment had certainly been _embarrassing,_ as long she didn’t say anything els- 

“Aww… Come on Makoto! I thought it was actually pretty cute!” 

 _Nope... There’s the blush again…_  

Looking for _anything_ to distract him from the heat he could feel starting to pool on his face once more Makoto’s focus was caught by the now, somewhat, more familiar sight of the golden numbers above the bluenette’s head. 

 _282,493_  

 _It’s definitely_ lower _than before but… Darn it, what was it exactly? Three hundred thousand and… something? Wait how long-_  

“You’ve been out for nearly 12 hours. I- We’ve been pretty worried.” 

“Thanks Say…” Trailing off uncertainty Makoto’s eyes dropped back down to Sayaka’s blue ones. “H-How did you?” 

“Oh? Didn’t you know Makoto? I’m psychic!” 

 _She’s what!? Does she have a power too? I see the numbers and she’s-_  

“Just kidding! I just have really good intuition!” Sayaka continued, a pristine smile on her face. It slowly dropped though when she noticed how much the boy had slumped after her joke. “Are you okay, Makoto?” 

“Ah… Yeah, it’s just… You really got me there Sayaka.” He replied, offering a much weaker smile back. Seeing that the girl’s expression was only becoming more concerned he climbed off the bed, moving towards her. He held his hand out towards her but hesitated for a moment. _I just, well,_ re _met her is this-_  

When Sayaka offered an encouraging smile and a nod he placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled at her, fully ignoring the numbers he saw at the top of his vision. “I’m sorry Sayaka, it’s just been a pretty bad day, huh?” 

Sayaka’s own smile dimmed slightly before she shuffled in her seat for a moment. When she had finished he could feel her hair brushing against his hand, her head slightly tilted towards it and her eyes closed. He felt a blush rising again but he ignored it, they both needed a little bit of comfort at this time. 

It didn’t mean that he hoped this moment ended soon though. 

After a minute or so Sayaka’s eyes snapped back open. “Ah!” 

“What’s wrong?” He asked, taking a step backwards in surprise. 

“I almost forgot! Taka came by a few minutes before you woke up, there’s going to be a meeting any minute now in the dining hall, we’re going to be late!” 

“Huh? What time’s the meeting?” 

“Seven. We need to go!” 

Giving a nod Makoto turned ready to move when he spotted the notepad again, lying with a few pens and pencils by its side. 

 _Seven o’clock huh?_  

“Do you want to go ahead? I just have something I need to do quickly.”

Sayaka just tilted her head in confusion. “But... you don’t know where the dining hall _is_.” 

“Oh, right…” Makoto acknowledged, scratching his cheek sheepishly. “One moment then please?” 

When Sayaka gave a nod Makoto’s eyes flicked above her head before turning to the notepad, quickly scribbling a memo on the first page he turned to. 

 _Sayaka, 282,367, ~19:00._  

Turning back to the girl waiting by his door Makoto spoke. “Okay, ready!” 

In response Sayaka held out her hand. “Then let’s go!” 

Makoto flushed slightly when he saw the hand, unsure what to do, but it quickly darkened slightly further when he saw she was just holding out his room key to him. 

Taking the key with a _thank you_ they left his room and began to walk down the hallway. 

“Hey, Sayaka?” When he received a questioning hum in response he continued, “Why were you in my room in the first place?” 

“Ah… well… When you were knocked out we were going to leave you in your room to recover alone but it was mentioned that because of the… situation we’re in that someone should stay with you… Just in case.” 

Feeling a chill run down his spine Makoto spoke again to try and move on as quickly as possible, “And you… volunteered?” 

Cheeks ever so slightly pink, Sayaka responded “Well… Some people heard that we knew each other so...” Misinterpreting the look on his face she hastily continued, “Ah! But I didn’t mind! I passed the time by singing and… well...” 

“Oh, I’m sorry I missed it…” Makoto said despondently. 

“That’s okay.” Sayaka waved off, before she stopped and faced him, her serene face enough for his breath to hitch for a second. “Maybe I could do it again sometime.” 

“I…” But Sayaka had already started moving again, passing through the large double doors in front of them. 

Entering the dining hall just behind her the first thing he noticed was that nearly all of his peers had already arrived, either seated around a large table in the middle or seated off to the side away from everyone else. It came as no surprise who fit into the second category. 

 _Everyone’s already here… I guess we’ll just have to talk more later…_  

“I’ll look forward to it!” 

Turning to face the girl at his side Makoto let loose a small chuckle before responding, “Intuition again?” 

Sayaka merely looked aside for a moment, humming under her breath. It lasted a few seconds further before she began speaking, a cheeky grin on her face. “Nope! That time I knew because I’m psychic!” 

Eyes widening in disbelief, Makoto barely stuttered out a confused _Huh?_ before the bluenette moved forwards to take her place at the packed table. 

“W-Wait! Sayaka?” 

When Sayaka looked back it was with nothing more than an innocent smile on her face and, upon seeing the stunned expression on his, a cheerful wink.

* * *

The meeting went as expected. After a chatising from Taka for being late (he really didn’t think that was his fault though… again) and a (not very) brief scare from the still missing Kyoko, Sayaka and he listened as the groups explained what they had discovered as they had looked around the school. 

Many points were brought up, like the soundproofing of the rooms ( _and didn’t that mean that nobody else heard Sayaka’s singing so it was sort of like a-_ he cut the thought off before he started blushing _again_ because he felt as though he’d done enough of that already since waking up in his room, let alone the rest of the day) and the fact that all rooms contained a bathroom, though a point was made that it was only the female ones that could be locked. 

“Huh? Hold on a second please.” 

Turning he found that it was Sayaka who had interrupted, and when everyone else turned to look at her she continued, “When I was in Makoto’s room I noticed that the bathroom door didn’t open. I had thought it was locked but…” 

The class turned to look at him, considering looks on their faces. Sayaka and... Chihiro _(?)_ in particular looked stunned at the news. 

“But wouldn’t that mean…” 

“Mr Naegi is actually a-” 

“I punched a chick?!” 

“Makoto _is_ an androgynous name…” 

“N-NO!” Makoto exclaimed, his hands thrown in front of **him** self in panic. “No! I am a boy- male! I’m male!” After taking a breath to calm himself he continued to speak, “I don’t know why my bathroom doesn’t open, I’ll have to check later.” 

Thankfully this non-answer was accepted and everyone turned back to continue the discussion, though not without a final look from Byakuya. He almost looked… 

 _No! Not thinking it, not thinking it!_  

It was because of his thoughts that he missed the relieved look sent his way by Sayaka. He might have been slightly more receptive… 

Next was how two groups had tried to escape out the windows, or try and find a way to contact people on the outside. Apparently there had been a brief moment of confusion when Sakura had almost joined the latter group before she accepted that she would have been far more useful in the other. Unfortunately despite this, even she was unable to pry the windows open. Mondo collaborated by confirming that the metal gate in the entrance hall was equally as hard to break through, as well as the pair of gates they had found in front of the staircases leading to the upper floors. 

Despite her demeanor, Makoto could help but feel a little sad for Toko when she mentioned that nobody had asked her to join up with them, especially after their introduction earlier in the day. It didn’t mean he approved of her language though. _Note to self, don’t let her met Komaru if she insists on speaking like that…_  

It was next mentioned that the kitchen just beyond this dining hall was full of food, self replenishing food apparently if Monokuma was to be believed. 

 _Seems like we’re expected to stay here for a very long time huh…_  

A brief look around showed that he wasn’t the only one who had noticed this detail. 

The moment was soon broken though when- 

“It seems that many of you have not yet grasped the seriousness of the situation.” 

Turning to the source of the voice he saw- 

 _2,087,442,407_  

“Kyoko!” 

“Where the heck have you been?” 

Either oblivious to the eyes on her or simply uncaring she moved and placed a piece of paper down onto the table. A brief glance showed that it was a map. After disregarding telling them where she had found it it was revealed that, according to the map at least, they _were_ inside Hope’s Peak Academy.

 _Renovations…_  

It was Celeste who finally summed up the thoughts that they were all thinking. Well everyone but Hiro at least. 

“It is perfectly obvious that we have been imprisoned in some secret location, with no way out.” 

The silence in response to _that_ statement was suffocating. 

Everyone was panicking to some degree. When Sayaka attempted to calm them he couldn’t help but notice that her clenched fist was shaking. 

He wanted to offer some words of comfort to her, to the tearful Chihiro, to _everyone_ but it was Celeste who spoke next once more. 

“Survival is not based on who is the strongest or the smartest. It comes down to who can adapt.” 

 _Adapt? I’m not sure this is something I_ ever _want to adapt to…_  

Some more words and a self imposed school regulation later (that forbid the action of leaving your room after ‘Nighttime’) Celeste left the room, the back of her numbers the last thing he saw. 

Nearly everyone else was quick to follow, with only a few exceptions. 

“Hey. Makoto.” 

Flinching slightly at the voice, he turned, his involuntarily trembles only increasing when he saw who had addressed him. 

“Calm down.” Mondo bluntly told him, “I wanted to… to…” 

With a nervous swallow Makoto stared into the man’s eyes, not daring to look at his numbers this time. “Y-Yeah?” 

“I’m getting there god-dammit!” Mondo yelled harshly. When Makoto flinched once more though he took a clearly visible exhale, his fists clenched at his sides. “I wanted to… apologise. For hitting you. And yelling I suppose.” 

“It’s f…” Cutting off the reflexive response Makoto’s hand raised to rub his jaw. While the pain had dulled considerably it had still **hurt** , and to be in front of giant who had caused it was just bringing it back. 

“Look I get it. You don’t have to forgive me right away.” Mondo said, speaking before he could offer any more. The male then looked down, his hair shadowing his face. “I’ll just…” 

“Wait!” Makoto yelled, somehow managing to match Mondo’s earlier volume and his finger extended out in front of him. Giving the finger a cursory look he looked back into the biker’s eyes. “I forgive you.” 

“What?! But I-” 

“And I’m sorry too.” When Mondo sent him an incredulous look he explained. “For… looking away when I was speaking to you.” 

“Erm, it’s fine dude. Forget about it.” 

“Done!” Makoto smiled. It swiftly became a frown though “I… I get it. It’s been... a bad day.” 

“You can fucking say that again.” 

Cringing slightly at the language Makoto spoke again, “Just be careful okay? In a situation like this…” 

“I get it. I… could have killed you, you know.” 

In spite of the fear he felt in response to that statement Makoto merely nodded. Thinking about it he really had been lucky. He didn’t want to imagine what could have happened if someone like Sayaka or Chihiro had been the target of Mondo’s rage. 

“I’ll tell you what!” Mondo exclaimed to him. “I’ll let you punch me!” 

“W-What?” 

“Come on, it’s only fair! Hit me!” 

"B-But... 

"Hit me! Come on, one free punch!" 

With another nervous gulp Makoto considered his options, he could walk away or… His eyes caught Mondo’s fist, now slightly raised in response to his yelling. 

“I said-” 

With a nervous yell of his own Makoto’s fist moved forward to collide with Mondo’s own. Before he could lose his nerve he spoke. “T-There, now we’re even.” 

Mondo merely blinked at him, his face the picture of confusion. After a moment he broke out into a wide grin. “Ha! You got some guts little dude!” 

“Ah, thank you?” 

“Terrible punch though.” 

Mouth dropping open in indignation Makoto spoke, “W-Well it’s hard to measure up to someone like you I suppose.” 

“What? That little hit?! That was nothing! You should have seen this one I did when on the streets! I managed to hit out a guy’s piercing, right from his-” 

The sound of a throat being cleared sounded from his left, a look revealed it was Sayaka, waiting with a smile that looked almost… dangerous. 

It seemed that Mondo noticed it too as with a cough he cut off his sentence. “Never mind. I’ll see you tomorrow Makoto.” He finished, flashing him another grin, this time with a thumbs up. 

With that the biker turned on his heel and out of the room. 

Makoto was ready to follow him when the room was filled with the sound of a _*Ding dong, bing bong*_ and his attention was caught by the monitor turning on too to reveal Monokuma. It turned out to be the nighttime announcement. _10pm already?_  

After it had sounded Makoto turned back to Sayaka, her gaze still focused on the now empty monitor. 

“Ready to go?” 

Turning to him with a smile and a nod the pair exited the room together heading off towards their rooms. 

Bidding each other a good night Makoto looked up to catch Sayaka’s number one final time for the day. 

Upon entering his room Makoto moved to his notepad, still open to the page he was on earlier. He was quick to add to it while the number was still fresh in his mind. 

 _Sayaka, 271,541, ~ 22:00._  

 _Therefore three hours = (282,367 - 271,541) = ~10826 seconds._  

Looking down at his notes with a sigh Makoto’s eyes narrowed in determination. He looked up to the camera pointing over his shoulder, then the bed behind him. 

He wanted nothing more than to collapse into bed and put this entire, horrible day behind him, but he had been doing that all day. He really shouldn't spend any more time in bed. 

And besides, this was a school. 

It was only fair that he did his homework.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay. Glad that’s done.
> 
> As fun as writing some of these interactions are (And it’s fun don’t get me wrong.) it still takes a lot out of you. And this is barely 3000 words. All of my respect for people who churn twice as much out on a regular basis.
> 
> Anyway thanks for reading! As always please let me know what you think, whether it’s my question from before, your own thoughts or just how much I suck and how to improve.
> 
> Until the next time!


	3. 82800 Seconds and Counting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some waking, some walking and some working.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again!
> 
> So…
> 
> Umm…
> 
> …
> 
> I’ll be honest, I don’t really have anything to say here this time so…
> 
> Chapter!

All was quiet inside Makoto’s room.

Disturbing implications aside, the soundproofed walls and doors really did offer the perfect environment to sleep in.

Makoto himself was taking advantage of the silence to catch up on some of the sleep he had missed out on the night before and was tightly secured within the covers of his, thankfully, very comfortable bed. The soft sound of the boys’ snores the only sound present in the otherwise silent room. 

The snores paused for a moment as the boy stirred slightly and unconsciously began to fidget, the smallest frown forming on his face, before his expression relaxed, as he was now in an even more perfect position to lie in, and he sank back into his pillow with a satisfied sigh.

Were Makoto actually awake to comment it was likely that he would describe the moment as absolutely-

**_*DING DONG, BING BONG*_ **

With a startled cry Makoto blearily looked up from his new position on the floor at the monitor on the wall in front of him, just in time to see the screen change to an image of the two toned Monokuma. Once the picture had settled the voice began, in what Makoto was sure was at least _twice_ the volume of the announcement the previous night.

 _“Wakey, wakey everyone! It is now 7am! The sun is shining and it's far_ _too beee-yutiful a day to spend a-wasting away in bed!”_

With a final **_crackle_ **of static the picture faded away, leaving the room silent once more.

Blinking in an attempt to remove the sleep from his eyes, Makoto raised his hand to rub against the new sore spot on his head and his now ringing ears before his gaze moved, first to the bed behind him and then to the covers that were still entangled around his legs.

His confusion lasted a few seconds more before he let out a resigned sigh and fell back against the side of his bed with a groan.

* * *

Now firmly on his feet Makoto stood in front of the door he assumed led to the bathroom, but just as Sayaka had mentioned the night before, it seemed completely unwilling to open.

_It was confirmed last night that only the female bathrooms should be able to lock so why…?_

With both a final hard push and pull yielding no results Makoto sighed. “It really is locked…” He confirmed to himself.

“Not true!”

Spinning round with a yelp Makoto was treated to the image of Monokuma now perched upon the edge of his bed.

“Y-You-”

“Me!” Monokuma shouted, cutting him off with a laugh. “But come now, let's skip the boring overreaction phase shall we? Nobody will pay attention if it’s exactly the same as the last time!”

Wait, what?

“Wh-What? La-”

“Your classmates of course!” Monokuma said, paws raised in anger. “They’re all the same! They ask a question but when the ever so kind Monokuma comes to answer it’s all screams and tears and ‘Get out, I’m changing!’ I mean how _ungrateful_ can you- ”

Unable to keep up with the bear’s rapid speech Makoto simply stared, waiting until it stopped talking.

“-own fault I suppose! I was warned about what bastards you teenagers could be!” The bear finished, lowering its head with a sigh.

Makoto waited a moment more before he tried to speak again. “W-”

“But enough about me, your door! For you see-”

What followed was an explanation about how Makoto had somehow ended up with a door too large for it’s door frame but, thankfully, the solution was simple to implement, the door just requiring to be lifted as he pulled. In an effort to try and end the ‘conversation’ as soon as possible Makoto gave the instructions a try and was pleasantly surprised to see that the door did actually open.

As he went to enter the room however, he was forced to turn around again when the bear cleared its throat behind him.

“Now Makoto, what do we say?”

Unwilling to play along with the bears antics any longer Makoto went to turn back round and enter the bathroom.

_*Snikt*_

He froze. The sight and sound of the incredibly _sharp_ metal claws the bear now sported enough to cause his body to completely lock up.

“What do we say when somebody helps you?” The bear cooed.

“T-Thank you.” He replied, speaking through gritted teeth.

“There’s a good boy!” Monokuma chortled, claws still extended. “You don’t want to forget your manners!”

Spinning on his heel Makoto finally entered the bathroom to find a simple setup consisting of a shower, toilet, sink and mirror, all of which were surrounded by tiles, each coloured  a depressingly cold grey.

In an effort to both wake himself up and to lower his new found irritation he stopped in front of the sink and splashed some water on his face, before viewing his tired, and still numberless reflection in the mirror.

Quickly drying himself off he re-entered his room proper to see Monokuma now stood on the desk at the far end of the room, looking back and forth over the area.

“W-What are you-”

The bear turned back, a picture of contemplation painted on its face.

“Oh Makoto it’s the darndest thing! There I was last night making sure nothing happened to any of my precious little students when I realised... you weren’t there! Now were you just trying to get some privacy as you tugged your little lucky stick? Orrrrr…”

The bear’s gaze fell on to the closed pad of paper beside its feet. Makoto choked on his gulp as his rising blush fought for dominance over his rapidly paling face.

Feeling his eyes widen in horror Makoto stumbled forward with his arm outstretched in a vain attempt to stop what was to come. “That’s-”

“Maybe you were kept up by something else?!” The bear yelled, proceeding to open the pad and look over its contents.

Makoto didn’t dare to speak and instead shut his eyes in preparation. After a moment, the bear started to chuckle, starting small but quickly escalating, the volume increasing in turn. Eventually the bear collapsed, paws held against its stomach as laughter shook its whole frame.

“This is-” Cut off by another belly laugh Monokuma tried again, “Y-You actually decided to keep a _diary_!?”

“Ah… I-”

“Oh this is _gold_ ! `Dear Diary, I was so excited today to join Hope’s Peak Academy, especially when I got to meet my new classmates. Most of them seem nice, _especially_ Sayaka Maizono who actually still remembers me from middle school! I’m so glad-'”

Feeling himself flush in indignation over the bear’s mocking tone, Makoto sharply turned to exit the room, leaving the bear to laugh over it’s new entertainment.

Somehow he managed to resist the urge to check on the calculation filled paper he had stored in his pocket as he did so.

* * *

Closing the door on the bear’s laughter, giving a sigh in relief when it cut it off entirely, Makoto let his mind wander over exactly what he had calculated the night prior.

 _I know there’s a lot of error in the details but… three and a bit days until Sayaka’s countdown hits zero, and Leon and Junko’s too if I remember correctly… No wait, it was above three days_ last night _but that means it’s already_ below _that now…_

Coming out of his thoughts he was surprised to find himself in front Sayaka’s door, his hand already raised ready to knock. He soon did so, his final thought echoing through his mind.

_Three days…_

After a moment had passed without a reply Makoto moved to knock the door a second time, slightly firmer this time.

No answer.

A third knock soon echoed as Makoto stood waiting, hoping, that nothing was wrong and that _Sayaka was fine_ and nobody was going to kill _anybody_ and _therewas_ no _way_ -

“I believe Sayaka already left alongside Leon this morning!” A loud voice boomed from beside him.

“AH!”

And with that Makoto turned into a large, uniform covered chest and a quick glance up revealed-

_1,147,733_

“T-Taka!”

Looking vaguely sheepish the Moral Compass spoke, “My apologies, I tried to get your attention but it seems you didn’t hear me!”

“Ah, no I… Sorry about that...”

Taka merely waved off his apology, speaking with a wide grin, “Not to worry Makoto, I’m just pleased to see you up at this time, a vast improvement from yesterday!”

“That’s-” Frowning slightly, Makoto made to object to the statement when Taka’s earlier words finally registered. “Wait, Leon and Sayaka?”

“Yes! I am pleased to report that it seems that Leon is in a similar mindset to myself in that we should all come together in this... trying time.” A pained grimace arose on Taka’s face for a moment before his face reverted back into a smile, “I saw Leon escort Sayaka off towards the dining room showing a real interest in her ultimate talent!”

Feeling a pang of disappointment over the fact that he had likely missed his chance to spend some more time with Sayaka because of the time he had spent dealing with Monokuma, Makoto slumped in relief over just how stupid he had been. Of _course_ nothing had happened.

Straightening his posture once more (as there was no way he was going to slouch in front of the _Ultimate Moral Compass_ of all people) Makoto readied a smile and proper greeting when he was interrupted, this time by his stomach reminding him about his lack of attention towards it thus far.

_*Growl*_

“Makoto!” Taka reprimanded. “I trust that you weren’t planning on skipping breakfast!”

“Ah, no! I’ve just got up and-”

“Well that’s good at least!” Taka acknowledged, “But don’t put it off any longer! Breakfast is well known to be the most important meal of the day as a well balanced one provides the suitable energy requirements in order to put forth your best efforts in the classroom!”

As Taka paused for breath Makoto nodded his assent but anything else he was about to add was lost as Taka continued.

“And without your best efforts in class your grades will surely suffer, which could impact you later in life! It would be downright _irresponsible_ for anyone to-”

_*Growl*_

As Taka’s impromptu lecture paused once more Makoto frowned.

_That wasn’t me... S-So…_

Makoto’s eye line lowered, leaving Taka’s face until he reached-

“Wait… Have _you_ eaten breakfast yet, Taka?”

“T-That’s-” Taka stuttered, his composure lost. “I was just so busy performing my morning duties that I haven’t yet had the opportunity!”

“Oh… Then, do you mind if I eat breakfast with you Taka?” Makoto asked.

Taka seemed almost… stunned by his offer, “You wish for me to join you? Why?”

“W-Well it’s like you said, we should all try to get along with each other while we’re here, right?” Makoto questioned hesitantly.

Taka’s eyes lit up as his arm raised up in order to give him a salute, “T-That would be excellent!” In spite of his words however a look of alarm soon formed on his face. “I must apologise Makoto for it seems I have greatly misjudged you as well as treating you so unfairly!”

“Ah, that’s okay…” He replied haltingly, but Taka had already bowed down in front of him, perpendicularly to the floor.

“My apologies Makoto!”

“I-It’s fine!” Makoto spluttered.

As Taka righted himself once more he spoke, “Shall we be off?” And when Makoto nodded his consent they were off.

Whilst walking the duo passed by both Chihiro ( _672,552_ ) who hesitantly offered them a shy smile in response to their greetings and Toko ( _1,813,721,863_ ) who didn’t offer any verbal reply but did at least _look_ at him for a moment, which was admittedly more than Taka got, heading back towards the dorms and, just before they entered the dining hall proper, Makoto had a chance to offer a good morning to Mondo ( _699,710_ ) who gave him a big thumbs up and an enthusiastic “Yo!” in return.

It looked as though Mondo may have said more but upon seeing his current company merely left it at that, offering only a heated glare and a grumble towards Taka.

As Mondo stomped away Taka turned to face him, “Makoto I must ask, how is it that you are on such good terms with that delinquent?”

“De- Ah! No, Mondo isn’t anyone bad!”

“Isn’t he the leader of the biggest biker gang in Japan?” Taka asked, raising a singular large eyebrow at him.

“That’s- Ah, yeah...” He conceded before he blanched, waving his hands in front of himself, “But Mondo’s not a bad person!”

Taka’s expression didn’t change and instead he merely looked down at Makoto’s jaw for a second before returning to look Makoto in the eye.

Suppressing a wince at the reminder, Makoto kept up an earnest smile. “Really, he’s not so bad once you give him a chance!”

Taka frowned slightly before turning off to the side in contemplation. “I… I suppose if I had the wrong impression of you…” As his words trailed off he turned back to face his companion and gave a firm nod, though whether in response to Makoto’s words or his own he was unsure, before continuing his strides and entering the dining hall, Makoto quick on his heels.

* * *

_1,168,068_

_1,159,548_

“What do you think we should discuss as we dine Makoto, the economy or politics?”

Turning his gaze away from whatever Celeste and Hifumi were doing at the opposite end of the table (or more accurately whatever Hifumi was doing as Celeste tried to not so subtly move away from the Fanfic Creator) Makoto looked back at his ‘seat buddy’ with a confused “Huh?”

“Our topic of conversation!” Taka clarified. “The economy or politics? Or would you prefer international affairs?”

“Can’t we just have a normal conversation?” Makoto asked hesitantly.

Taka blinked in confusion. “A normal conversation? What would that entail?”

“Well, we already introduced ourselves right? So why don’t we get to know each other more by telling each other things like our likes, or our hobbies?”

“I see! This will surely help us forge a stronger relationship! I shall begin!” Taka announced with a grin. Lowering his utensils (and in fact the whole fist) with a _*thud*_ he began, “As you know I am Kiyotaka Ishimaru the Ultimate Moral Compass, but you may be surprised to learn that my likes include studying, while my hobbies also consists of studying!”

“I… see…” Makoto responded, hoping his baffled thoughts weren’t showing too much on his face.

Taka continued, pausing just long enough to raise his chopsticks once more, this time pointed at Makoto instead. “I take my studies extremely dillegantly and am always looking for new ways to test myself! As such, please ask me any question you can think of!”

Makoto opened his mouth to respond with the first thing that popped into his head.

“...”

_So this is what it means for your mind to go blank…_

Knowing that Taka was still patiently waiting for a reply Makoto briefly turned back around to the other people in the dining hall before his eyes flicked up to Taka’s own numbers.

_Maybe… I know I have a vague idea about Sayaka’s numbers but..._

“Do you... know how long one million seconds is?”

Taka’s expression lit up, “Aha! A brain teaser, splendid! What sort of units do you prefer?”

Pausing to think over the (actually quite reasonable now that he thought about it) request Makoto gave a reply, “Ah... Days please.”

Makoto watched as Taka’s eyes closed as he thought over the problem, his gaze returning to Taka’s countdown as he waited.

_1,147,097_

_1,147,096_

_1,147,09-_

“It comes out to… 625 over 54! So 11.5740 recurring or 11.6 to three significant figures!” Taka declared with a laugh.

_He calculated that all in his head?!_

As Makoto congratulated Taka on his (almost certainly) correct answer he made a mental note to write down that answer as soon as he was in a camera blindspot.

“Ha! This is fun!” Taka said with another laugh. “Okay my turn! Makoto what is the second derivative of-”

“Ah! That’s okay!” Makoto intejected. _I’m not sure I could manage the_ first _derivative of anything Taka could give me, let alone the second!_ “Besides I should do my introduction first right?”

“Of course! How presumptuous of me… It seems you deserve my apologies once again Makoto!”

Smiling weakly at Taka’s continued enthusiasm Makoto began. “W-Well I guess that I like many things such as curry or being with my friends and I suppose my hobbies are watching TV or reading manga, especially if I get to talk to my friends or my sister Komaru about them…”

_*Clatter*_

Looking up at the noise Makoto saw that Taka was now stood, his chair left forgotten on the floor behind him.

“Did… I say something wrong?”

It was at this point that Makoto realised that Taka was staring at him as though he had just become the new president of Japan (which for a high school student, even one at Hope’s Peak Academy would be pretty unlikely).

“So… that’s how it is…” Taka mumbled to himself.

“Ah… Taka?”

“How could I have been so blind?! Studying these frivolous activities is what would actually allow me to converse with people! Please, you must teach me all about how to study these things like you do!” And with a fast reach across the table Makoto found his shoulder in a tight grip, Taka’s fierce expression now barely a foot away from him. “Please teach me, Mako- No! Professor!”

And with that Makoto’s breakfast had somehow expanded into teaching Taka all about the joys of procrasti- Urm, having fun…

At the very least Taka seemed to enjoy it, if his proclamation that he was going to study video games, TV shows and manga were any indication.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like maths.
> 
> Taka is pretty fun to write too.
> 
> On that note though, please let me know who you would like Makoto to spend some ‘FTEs’ with and I’ll do my best to try and include them in the coming chapters before… well you know.
> 
> And leave any other thoughts you have too, please let me know what you like and what you think completely sucks!
> 
> Until the next time!


End file.
